Laughter, Tears, and Our Teen Years, by McKennaugh

There are times in our American history that we remember shamefacedly. Times when we whipped blacks until they bled; when we made them into our slaves. We said they were not humans, and, somehow, still thought we were righteous and justified before God. Why we believed he loved people with white skin and not people with black is beyond me. Oh, yes, there were times that our country did deeds in the name of God that were indeed being done for the devil. There was a time that we forced the Indians on a Trail of Tears, killing them, tearing them from their homeland, stripping away their identity. There were times that, in America, we locked the disabled in appalling institutions, said that they were idiots and thus did not deserve a life of love or hope. And we look back on these things our nation has done and think, “Surely if our generation was placed in that time we would not have committed such acts. Today we have knowledge; then we were ignorant.”

And, yet, today, something terrible is happening. America, land of the free and home of the brave, has indeed given us freedom — perhaps too much, for we have freedom to take away the life of a child.

Each year, another quarter of the babies meant to be born are missing. Gone. Forever. How can a country go on when it kills its own countrymen? And, yet, we abort our sweet babies.

Will we someday look back on this and shake our heads at the horror of it all, like most of us do when we think about the slavery that flourished here? Or will we continue on this path of ours, stealing life from precious infants? The President—the very person leading our country—believes that we should be “pro-choice.” Will the rest of us follow his advice? Or will we have the strength to stand on our own, let our voices rise, speak for little ones unspoken for? Should we be pro-choice over being pro-life? Do we value our choices more than our children?

Approximately a little more than 4 million children are born each year. Over one million are aborted during that same time period. That means a quarter of our babies never give that first cry, smile that first smile, take that first step. A quarter of America’s children ceased to exist here on earth. Not because of hunger or war or accident. No, because of choice. Can anyone really believe a baby is just a bit of tissue? I suppose they could, but not without believing that you and I are just pieces of tissue, too. Doctors have many theories to justify abortion by, but, when examined, do any of the theories stand? In the book, Where There Is Love, There Is God, Mother Teresa says, “Abortion—A murder! By whom? By the mother. By the doctor. How terrible. That little innocent child; that unwanted child; that aborted child. Right there, in the family. Maybe nobody is going to die in your family for a piece of bread. But that little one has to die because you don’t want it.”

If you’re a human, if I’m a human, than a baby is certainly a human, too. Out of the womb, it would be a terrible crime for someone to kill a baby. Inside the womb, it is permitted.

What would our nation be if we had allowed our children to live? Since 1973 an estimated 54,000,000 babies have been aborted. Fifty four million. 54,000,000 people who would have grown up, gotten married, had children. 54,000,000 people who would have changed the world. But they were never allowed to take that first breath.

Let there be life.

–McKennaugh

McKennaugh Kelley (mckennaugh@inbox.com) is sixteen years old. She lives in Troy, Pennsylvania with a handful of crazy, creative, but mostly wonderful little brothers.